Early Access Alpha or Beta: a double-edged sword

Early access is quite common in the gaming industry and can bring benefits as well as problems.

Developers make it available to a limited audience, and this can bring various benefits, such as receiving feedback from players and allowing them to get a taste of the game's experience before it's released. However, in my view, the public is not accustomed to using it only as something in construction that can and will improve. Players are used to playing complete games, not incomplete ones. Therefore, in my view, there are more negative than positive aspects to early access. However, when the game is already well-built and polished, such as Diablo IV, which opened early access but faced several criticisms related to balancing, the team was able to improve the game by receiving feedback and will release it better than in early access. However, there must be significant care taken to ensure that bad experiences are not so great as to cause many interested players to lose interest.

Another problem is that the game can change drastically from an Alpha or Beta, for example, and the experience can be frustrating for players who have become accustomed to some mechanics of early access. So, avoiding this possibility is the best way to develop a game.

Therefore, thinking about the consequences is the best way to think before launching an early access and opening it with development already in the final and more polished stages. Even though the team wants to be open with the community, avoiding players experiencing bugs and problems is always the right choice.